Braxton

Braxton turns 13 today, November 9, 2006. Our baby is officially a teenager. I’m sure he doesn’t want me referring to him as a baby but it’s a title he has to live with. I was thinking last night that he was born while I was on active duty and here I am 13 years later, on active duty again. Who would have thought?

Braxton has always had such a sweet disposition. I suppose you’re not supposed to use the word “sweet” when referring to boys, but there’s no other way to describe him. He’s just been one of the most pleasant kids to have around. He always has a smile on his face and brightens up any room he enters. I suppose it’s no wonder that his favorite color is yellow. It certainly fits his disposition.

He’s a 7th grader this year which means it’s his first year of Junior High. I think that was a little traumatic for Janae, OK maybe for me as well. We no longer had any kids in grade school. It was a sign that we were growing older. Braxton loves junior high. He’s taking French this year and absolutely loves it. We tried to get him to take Spanish but he wouldn’t hear of it. I keep telling him that Spanish “es la lengua de Dios” but he disagrees. He wears a lot of yellow, as you can imagine; yellow running pants, yellow shirts, yellow coats, etc. He told Janae that at the beginning of the year he was walking down the hall and a girl called to him, “Hey yellow boy!” He didn’t know who she was. We told him she was flirting with him. He didn’t’ like hearing that.

Ever since he was little he has loved to skip. It’s his way of thinking. When he’s skipping if you talk to him he’ll ignore you as you’re interrupting whatever deep thoughts he’s thinking. When we first moved into our house, he created a set of tracks on our front grass that looked like a truck had come and spun its tires across our grass. He skipped down one track, turned around and skipped back on the other side. Our neighbors couldn’t figure out what the tracks were from until they saw him out there skipping. My cousin Samatha reminded me that my cousin Russell used to skip when he was little. Well Russell grew into an extremely intellectual man and a gifted writer. Braxton is doing the same.

He’s writing a book called “Koros and Deros.” It’s about ancient dragons and the fight between good and evil. He sends me updates on a regular basis. He’s quite a good writer for being so young. His imagination continues to amaze me.

He’s also an accomplished artist. The things he can draw just amaze me. He and his brothers have all been blessed with that talent. Me, I can’t even draw a decent stick figure. Braxton loves to draw fictional characters that he uses in games he and Luke make up. They’re pretty cool. I guess all that skipping when he was little has paid off.

Before I got deployed, he and I would lie on the couch together in the morning before and sometimes after scriptures. It was great just to snuggle with him for a few minutes in the morning. I’m afraid that by the time I get home, he’ll have outgrown that. I mean, how many almost-14 year olds do you know that will want to do that with their Dads?

Just like Seth and Luke and their birthdays, I wish I could be there to celebrate with him but I have to console myself that I’ll be there next year when he turns 14 and is ordained to be a Teacher. I’m just grateful that I haven’t missed that important event.

Braxton, thanks for being such a great young man. Thanks for being a great example to Mom and I and to your brothers. We are so thankful you came to live with us all those years ago. You have been a real blessing to our family!!

I love you!!